11/25/2016 10:17:00 pm -
Reported by
Chuck Foster

Candy Jar Books have announced their latest Lethbridge-Stewart e-book, free to subscribers and those pre-ordering the next novel in the range, Blood of Atlantis.

Lethbridge-Stewart: The Wishing BazaarWritten by Sharon BidwellCover illustration by Richard Young

Back from New York, Lethbridge-Stewart is investigating one of the strangest cases that has come across his desk yet. Wishes are coming true, and if there’s one thing Lethbridge-Stewart still doesn’t believe in it’s magic. But what if he’s wrong?

This story is set between Times Squared and Blood of Atlantis.

The e-book is by author Sharon Bidwell, who as well as writing several novel under pen names Sharon Maria Bidwell and Sharon Kernow, also wrote three books in the Space: 1899 & Beyond series, one of which was co-authored with Lethbridge-Stewart range editor Andy Frankham-Allen, who said:

I first met Sharon via the wonderful world of social media back in, I think, 2009. I was very impressed with her work, and soon enlisted her for my Space: 1889 & Beyond series. Her work ethic was proven to me when a novella fell through at the last minute and she agreed to co-author a replacement with me – which we did, in only two weeks! Sharon’s first drafts are often better than a lot of published works out there, and from the off I told her that I would get her writing for the Lethbridge-Stewart series. She resisted for all of five minutes.

Sharon said:

I've written for and with Andy before with great success, so I was not entirely surprised when he got in contact about his latest project. For one thing, he'd been 'hinting' for some time that he wanted to rope me in and Andy isn't someone who understands no as an answer.Whenever I hear from Andy, I never know whether to cheer or groan. All those who write novels for well-known television shows now have my utmost respect. Some find it easy; for others the experience feels difficult and involves a lot of angst. I'm one of those worriers. Despite the responsibility, Andy has dragged me into incredible worlds and stories that are part of history and there's no way not to be grateful for that.Invariably the experience of writing for Lethbridge-Stewart was, for me, daunting, exciting, fun, and adventurous…a bit like the character himself.

Shaun Russell, head of publishing at Candy Jar, said:

Sharon was an unknown quantity for me, but I knew that Andy had worked with her before, so I was more than happy to see what she’d come up with. Having read her short story, and looked up her other work, I now believe she’s going to be a wonderful addition to our stable of authors on this series.

The cover of The Wishing Bazaar is by regular cover artist, Richard Young, who said:

I adore working with Candy Jar, and their cover briefs are always so specific, but this one was rather ambiguous as there were several elements that I could have used on the cover. I decided to concentrate on the alien of the piece.One passage of the story mentioned its burning eyes. Using a combination of traditional drawing and then colourisation in Photoshop (to really get the blazing eyes right), this is what I came up with.And I'm pleased to say everyone loved it.

The Wishing Bazaar will be sent out to every person who pre-orders Blood of Atlantis (Simon A Forward), which can be purchased individually or as part of the Series 3 Bundle (both UK and overseas), which includes the previous novel, Times Squared (Rick Cross), and the forthcoming novel, Mind of Stone (Iain McLaughlin), or the subscription deal for those wishing to get six books for the price of five.

Candy Jar is also pleased to announce that the subscription offer is now being extended to international customers. Please see their subscription page for more details.

Candy Jar is also offering a special promotion for its online customers: buy Blood of Atlantis for £8.99 and get Times Squared for £5. This promotion also applies to six other Candy Jar titles. Full details can be found via their website.

Competition

Candy Jar Books have kindly offered the chance for a readers to win a set of the series three books (Times Squared, Blood of Atlantis, Mind of Stone), the two books Connecting Who and Philip Martin's Gangsters, and also for one lucky person to win all five publications. To be in with a chance to win one of the prizes simply answer the following question:

Name the recurring character created by Philip Martin for Doctor Who on television.

Please send your answers along with your name, address and where you heard about the competition (news site, news app, other website, etc.) to comp-candyjar@doctorwhonews.net with the subject "Five Books Rapid!". The competition is open to UK readers only, closing date 11th December 2016. Only one entry per household will be accepted.